Lawson
was called the "Izaak Walton" of gardening writers. He
was probably of "humble birth." Evelyn in his book
entitled Sylva speaks of him as "our honest
Lawson," which might seem somewhat patronizing.
Lawson's books have a distinct freshness which is
commendatory. He "professed to write entirely from
experiences."
He was the author of two of the most delightful
gardening books in the English language. The first,
The Covntrie Hovswifes Garden (1617), was the
first one particularly written for women gardeners.
His second book, a most practical one, was A New
Orchard and Garden (1618). The orchard was still
designed as part of the garden and he described a
typical "North-country" English garden. This book went
through 9 editions to 1683. It was in reality the
first English book on fruit trees. In general, his
books were designed for the "simple cottage."
